"[Cultivating Buddhism]."
Lu Yang frowned tightly, seeing Xiao Shan continue: "It's literally cultivating Buddha. That demon monk holds a dilapidated Buddha statue in his hand."
"He says as long as someone can help him repair this Buddha statue, they can receive gifts, ranging from spirit treasures to spiritual materials, techniques, and divine abilities. And there is no restriction on cultivation base. Foundation Establishment Perfected Ones can try, Qi Refining cultivators can try, even mortals without cultivation can try."
"The border general at the time had a firm will, so nothing happened initially."
"However, some soldiers had thoughts and wanted to gamble for the so-called opportunity. The result was that they just patched a corner of that Buddha statue and ascended to immortality in broad daylight!"
A look of shock appeared in the depths of Xiao Shan's eyes as he whispered:
"They really ascended in broad daylight. Under the gaze of everyone, they all saw that minor soldier who was originally only at the third layer of Qi Refining directly become a Foundation Establishment Perfected One."
The scene boiled over instantly at that time.
Repairing a Buddha statue, and in the blink of an eye, Qi Refining turned into Foundation Establishment... Even the Dao Court isn't this exaggerated! Granting Foundation Establishment official positions also has certain Dao comprehension restrictions!
So the situation quickly became uncontrollable.
"Mortals, Qi Refining cultivators, and even some Foundation Establishment cultivators who hadn't been promoted for a long time... more and more people joined in, starting to help that demon monk repair the Buddha..."
Hearing this, Lu Yang interrupted directly:
"What about now? How is the situation now?"
Xiao Shan revealed a blank look upon hearing this, then whispered, "Just half an hour ago, the news from the border was still a crisis of extreme urgency..."
"...As for now, everything is fine."
At these words, Lu Yang's expression instantly became gloomy, while Xiao Shan took out a jade slip: "This is the last image transmitted."
Lu Yang immediately reached out and pointed.
The next second, he saw a scene sufficient to cause physiological discomfort—what met his eyes was a sea of white flesh.
At first, he thought it was a group of breeding pigs.
Getting closer, he discovered it was actually a group of people.
They were piled together, densely packed, regardless of gender, completely naked, all with smiles of compassion on their faces.
And clustered in the middle by them was a dilapidated Buddha statue. The Buddha's face was incomplete, limbs broken, leaving only a hole in the heart area, the inside hollowed out. The lotus platform it sat on was missing petals here and there, making one feel it was truly a miracle it could still stand without collapsing until now.
Immediately, the people around moved.
Without hesitation, they climbed onto the Buddha statue, using their own flesh and blood to fill the gaps.
Some crawled into the lotus pedestal, using their bodies to support the Buddha.
Some crawled into the statue, becoming its lungs and viscera.
Some climbed onto the face, becoming its facial features.
"Heavens..." Xiao Shan couldn't help but close his eyes. Lu Yang and Chong Guang similarly frowned tightly.
The piled-up flesh and blood intertwined at this moment, forming a visually impactful picture. What was even more terrifying was that in the end, it actually took shape.
"Amitabha!"
A solemn Buddhist chant. That [Buddha Statue] slowly opened and closed the lips and teeth piled up by countless people, spitting out a voice that sounded like an echo of a ten million people.
The next second, the flesh and blood began to melt.
The bizarre and weird scene disappeared completely. All the people filling the Buddha statue merged into it, but the Buddha statue still remained in that dilapidated appearance.
Only then did Lu Yang see that below the Buddha statue, a young novice monk with red lips and white teeth stood. He looked exactly like the Guangming Lu Yang knew, but unlike in his previous life, this Guangming was completely different; his mannerisms and speech were entirely different.
"Still not enough..."
A faint sigh came from the image, then stopped abruptly, revealing Xiao Shan's undisguised terrified face: "Please make a decision early, Your Majesty."
"Now more and more places have lost contact."
"All ten border cities are like this. First reporting emergency military situations asking for support, then stating nothing happened. There are many similar fragments..."
After speaking, Xiao Shan sighed helplessly again:
"Now the matter has spread within Tianwu City. Many rebels say Your Majesty is an incarnation of the World Honored One, coordinating inside and outside to destroy the entire Jiangdong..."
Before the voice fell, Lu Yang had already flicked his sleeves and stood up.
"Let's go take a look."
He had to admit, the World Honored One's move was faster than he imagined. How long had passed since the manifestation of the anomaly in Jiangdong? Less than an hour!
From another perspective, it shows the World Honored One is anxious too...
But not anxious enough.
If He were really crazy with anxiety, it wouldn't be the Buddha Child entering the stage, but like with [City Rampart Earth] in the previous life, the World Honored One would have possessed and descended personally.
From this, it can be seen that the secret of the five-thousand-year taboo is actually not important enough to the World Honored One. Or rather, the knowing person is at most just a variable, not enough to truly shake the World Honored One's foundation. It's just that the World Honored One is shameless and very cautious, so He is unwilling to let any variable exist.
But regardless, he couldn't let it continue.
Whatever plot this so-called [Cultivating Buddhism] has, it must be stopped. Just take this opportunity to see what other trump cards the opponent has.
Moreover, the opponent barged into Jiangdong single-handedly this time. If he didn't gang up on him, he would be letting down his advanced studies in the Saint Sect over previous lifetimes.
Thinking of this, Lu Yang immediately looked at Chong Guang beside him: "Is Fellow Daoist willing to go with me?"
Chong Guang nodded: "We should go together."
The next second, the two drove streaks of light, riding the wind into the void, speeding all the way. Soon they arrived at the border of Jiangdong, in the sparsely populated wilderness.
What met their eyes was a marvelous scene.
Walking at the very front was exactly Guang Ming in the appearance of a novice monk, dressed in a kasaya, holding a nine-ringed monk's staff in one hand, and fingering jade-white Buddhist beads in the other.
And behind him was the incomplete Buddha statue seen in the image earlier. But looking again now, he found that the Buddha statue was a bit more repaired compared to the beginning. The lotus flower it sat on was basically complete, the petals crystal clear, flowing with limpid golden light under the reflection of sunlight.
The next second, Guang Ming looked up.
He suddenly grinned, his white teeth bright and clean in the sunlight. As he opened his mouth, a voice transmitted over the clouds:
"Two benefactors, why stand in the clouds watching from afar?"
"This little monk is upright and aboveboard, with nothing that cannot be shown to people. If the two benefactors really want to see, just come closer to look. This little monk is not a stingy person."
Lu Yang was instantly speechless. You aren't a stingy person?
Who in the world doesn't know that Jiangxi has the World Honored One, prominent for being shameless? Among the four Dao Lords, you are the stingiest, always mingling with lowly cultivators!
But since he was exposed, Lu Yang no longer concealed himself.
Pressing down the streak of light, Lu Yang blocked directly in front of Buddha Child Guang Ming, saying in a deep voice: "Fellow Daoist, you have traveled a long way, leaving a trail of blood wherever you go."
Buddha Child Guang Ming was stunned upon hearing this, showing a surprised look: "There is such a thing?"
"This little monk came to Jiangdong only to [Cultivate Buddhism]. The people I met were all kind-hearted, warm and hospitable, actively helping. Who would have thought there were evil people committing sins!"
Lu Yang was stunned by his words. Good guy, who said the World Honored One hasn't been to the Sword Pavilion? This hypocritical innocent look is exactly the same as the sword bastard. Yet since he entered Jiangdong, ten cities are empty. Even if they are border perilous lands with sparse population, adding up it's a huge number of a million!
Of course, Lu Yang didn't care about this bit of death and injury.
The important thing was that the Dao Court officials died, but the official positions didn't return! Buddha Child Guang Ming swallowing them was one thing, but he actually swallowed the official positions too!
This problem was very serious.
"Things having come to this, why deceive yourself and others, Fellow Daoist?"
On the other side, Chong Guang sneered and said, "Killing is killing. What is there to dare not admit? Covering it up like the Sword Pavilion is meaningless."
Hearing this, Buddha Child Guang Ming's expression changed instantly:
"Absurd!"
"This humble monk has come to Jiangdong to cultivate Buddhism, following the righteous path. How could I possibly harm living beings? Jiangbei demon, don't spout nonsense and slander my righteous teachings!"